Phew! Kalle Oakes’ hyperbolic attack on high school basketball was overwhelming (March 1). Let me toss up a couple points.

I do believe a sticky team defense is significant in creating low shooting percentages, as well as forcing officials to blow the whistle frequently.

Coaches can teach individual defensive skills (crouching, shuffling, arms positioning) more easily than offensive skills, which require more precision and are usually acquired only through strong individual dedication. Very few players – one or two per team, as Oakes opined – get obsessed, positively here, about honing their skills to the utmost. Most are marginal ballpayers and, upon facing tenacious defenses, their limited skills for shooting and dribbling in particular are apparent.

The other point about offenses being under strain can be traced somewhat to the declining use of the ever-so-effective pure jumpshot. By pure, I mean the jump occurring first, followed by ball release at the apex. Maybe the use of the three-point line, past which the jumper is too forced, has caused its de-emphasis. Instead, there is more of the slow-release set shot, sometimes followed by an inconsequential jump.

Watch any level of post junior high play and the bona fide scorers are jumpshooters. A recent local example was Maranacook’s Ryan Martin, whose superb accomplishments were based on the shot.

Oakes discredits Thornton Academy’s shooting “only” 70 percent against Edward Little. Hey, that’s college-level stuff. Anyway, who would want to catch a fish on each and every cast?

Norm Gellatly, Auburn